This Professional Technical Certificate is designed to help new and existing writers work within a range of styles specific to the field of technical writing. This program focuses on advancing writing styles and competencies that impact on technical written reports, project proposals, feasibility studies, website communication, presentations, manuals, and other forms of technical correspondence. A well-rounded technical writer should have knowledge and writing experience across these areas.

It is likely that in one`s technical writing career you will be called upon to author or edit a particular text. By applying the principles that are taught in this course the participant can extend their capacity to cover a wide range of projects. Just as importantly, you can gain a broad set of skills that will benefit every project you are assigned. The organizational skills required for a user guide, the attention to client guidelines required for a proposal, and the ability to weave in examples and interviews required for a technical magazine article can carry over into other types of writing. As a result of this course of study, participants will end up with a well-defined portfolio of written technical documents. These can be added to or expanded after the class has ended.

All submitted work will be evaluated as per the guidelines stated in each lesson. If the work product meets or exceeds expectations an Official will be awarded. No books are required for this course although there are ample links to multiple resources. Students may complete this program in an accelerated fashion.

This program requires that the participants follow specific instructions for each lesson. We have been careful to communicate exactly what is expected. The participant may turn in their first writing sample to make sure they are on the right track for development of a portfolio. Since each lesson hinges on the previous one, the same methodology applies. It is the final portfolio that will be reviewed and graded by the administrator of the course.

Types of Document

Different types of technical documents require different skills. There is certainly much overlap in the required skills, but in general they are strongly emphasized in the following types of documents:

Proposals: persuasion, using data to make an argument, developing abstracts

Articles: including real-world examples, being conversational with dense content

This course will look at these document types and explore the writing skills associated with each of them.

Methodology

Each lesson is carefully developed around the participant`s ability to develop a baseline of written content that assumes some knowledge, little knowledge or no knowledge of the technical document they will be working on. Only after reading and applying the tips, techniques and grasping the fundamental and advanced techniques of writing to a specific area can the participant of this course reapply this new knowledge to the baseline document. A comparison of the original baseline writing to the developed "treatment" document will allow the participant of this program to fully grasp and apply the new knowledge gained to practical writing in the workplace.

This course can be completed in as little as 10-15 weeks or can be expanded up to 2-3 months.

As a result of engaging in this course of study, all serious minded participants will benefit in the following ways:

Plan writing projects with a strong understanding of the subject matter

The Certificate in Professional Technical Communication requires that the participant engage in independent and self-paced study. The instructional developer of this program has been careful to provide a detailed method of study. Self-directed quizzes and short answer probe questions are created to give the participant a good sense of if they are on track with their learning objectives. These tasks are for participant evaluation only.

In order to earn the official Certificate in Professional Technical Communication the participant will be required to submit samples of completed work that will then be evaluated for accuracy and representative knowledge of the subject matter. More details regarding the process leading to the Certificate in Professional Technical Communication are described in detail in the course curriculum.

Outline

Lesson 1: Getting Started with Professional Technical Communication Projects

The goal of this lesson is to prepare for the writing projects that comprise each of the lessons that follow. You will see how to tailor your writing to a particular audience and purpose.
Objectives

When you have finished this lesson, you will be able to:

Plan a writing strategy for each lesson that follows

Write for a specific type of audience, such as business decision makers or technicians

Analyze a task to decompose it into steps for your reader

Identify the appropriate format and style for a project

Plan a document that is well-crafted, targeted and suited to your audience

Lesson 2: Write a Proposal

The goal of this lesson is to write a proposal that combines persuasive elements and factual presentation, to convince reviewers to award you a contract or buy your services.
Objectives

When you have finished this lesson, you will be able to:

Interpret the component parts for a request for proposal (RFP) document, to understand what to include in your proposal

Design a proposal with an attractive layout, including white space, art, tables, and headings

Write a proposal with an appropriate structure and style, based on the needs of the specific project and the standards followed in the industry

Make the logic of your proposal clear and persuasive

Revise proposals to make them more effective

Lesson 3: Write a Data Report

The goal of this lesson is to use data in your writing. Data can be numbers, presented in a table or interspersed in your text. It can also be displayed visually, in charts and graphs. The ideal presentation has numbers as well as visuals, and text that describes what the data mean.
Objectives
When you have finished this lesson, you will be able to:

Integrate charts and graphs into your writing, to reach readers visually and show data in a compact form

Use numbers in your writing to back up observations with fact and guide the reader through the data

Apply parallelism and consistent structure, to make it easy to follow your reasoning

Use the most common parts of a data report, including the abstract and results sections, to organize your information

Create a clear and effective data report

Lesson 4: Write a Research Paper

The goal of this lesson is to write for a type of audience that pursues new ideas and new knowledge. The audience may be academic, or it may be a professional group that wants to advance findings and debate in its field. Research writing requires a style that is brief and to the point, and which conforms to the highly specific requirements of the publication to which it is submitted.

Objectives

When you have finished this lesson, you will be able to:

Recognize the range of styles used in research writing, from objective to first-person

Create the major sections of a research report, from abstract to conclusion, with appropriate content

Use citations of other peoples’ research to support your thesis with established facts

Communicate with a readership that requires a very concise style of writing

Write a research paper for publication in a scholarly or professional journal

Lesson 5: Write a How-To Guide

The goal of this lesson is to write a how-to guide that can lead someone through a procedure from start to finish.
Objectives

When you have finished this lesson, you will be able to:

Focus on making your procedures easy to follow for all types of readers, including those with limited reading skills

Add graphic art to your text to illustrate your points, including such things as photos and charts

Use formatting and layout for emphasis and readability, with emphasis on important points and ample white space

Use simple verb forms, with as many verbs as possible in the simple present form, to improve readability

Analyze a task to create a list of steps for completing it

Write a procedure that is easy to follow

Lesson 6: Write a User Guide, Part 1: Plan a Large Writing Project

The goal of this lesson is to get started writing a user guide that helps someone understand a complex product. In this lesson, you will plan the flow of your document based on the work flow of someone using the product. In a later lesson, you will fill in one section of the user guide with content.
Objectives

Align your chapters with the subject matter so that the flow of the book follows the flow of the work

Understand the features that distinguish a chapter from other types of section

Create an outline for a user guide

Lesson 7: Write a User Guide, Part 2: Describe a User Interface

The goal of this lesson is to write content for a user guide. You will complete one section of the outline you created in the previous lesson, when you planned the structure of a large user guide.
Objectives

When you have finished this lesson, you will be able to:

Guide the user towards practical outcomes in completing their tasks

Make good use of lists, for procedural steps and materials

Describe the features of the product you are documenting

Use graphic layout and art effectively

Create a typical section of a user guide

Lesson 8: Write Instructional Material

The goal of this lesson is to write instructional material that develops a user’s skills or knowledge.

Objectives

When you have finished this lesson, you will be able to:

Plan a training program that satisfies the needs of your participants and meets clear objectives

Develop examples of procedures that use realistic details

Design exercises that allow participants to practice procedures

Evaluate participant progress in learning new skills with quizzes and tests